Cetera Investment Advisers Has $4.24 Million Stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 10.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,745 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 1,926 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $4,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AVB. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,247 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $697,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 3.7% in the first quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,661 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $356,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Roundview Capital LLC boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 3,950 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 26,953 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $5,929,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 24.9% in the first quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 371 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, CFO Kevin P. O'shea sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.57, for a total transaction of $1,245,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 22,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,728,859.74. This represents a 20.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Edward M. Schulman sold 5,945 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.67, for a total value of $1,222,708.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,623,288.39. This represents a 25.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.45% of the company's stock.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB traded up $1.81 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $188.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 387,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 815,228. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $180.40 and a fifty-two week high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.22, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.86. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $202.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.81.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $689.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $759.08 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.70% and a net margin of 38.91%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.77 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $216.00 to $211.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $251.00 to $236.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 13th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $228.79.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.